Florida mayor accused of using dead woman's handicap placard to park at City Hall

A Florida mayor has been arrested for allegedly using the handicap placard of a woman who died in 2012, authorities said.

Davenport mayor Teresa Darlene Bradley, who is known professionally as Darlene Bradley, was arrested Tuesday and charged with criminal use of a deceased person's ID, possession of an altered or counterfeit decal and unlawful use of a handicap placard, according to a press release from the Polk County Sheriff's Office. Davenport is located about an hour southwest of Orlando.

Bradley was booked into the Polk County Jail and was later released after posting a $2,250 bail, the sheriff's office said.

Last month, the sheriff's office received information that Bradley was parking in various handicap spots although "she was not known to be handicapped or have a placard issued to her," according to the press release.

Polk County Sheriff

Video released by the Polk County Sheriff appears to show Davenport, Fla., Mayor Teresa Darlene Bradley parking her Ford Crown Victoria in a handicap spot in the parking lot of City Hall.

Deputies allegedly observed Bradley parking in one of the designated handicap spots. She placed the placard on her mirror before exiting the car and then removed it upon returning before she drove away, authorities said.

Video taken in the parking lot to Davenport City Hall on Monday appears to show Bradley parking her Ford Crown Victoria in a designated handicap spot on Monday, but she exits the car with no assistance. She then removes a large briefcase on wheels from the trunk and then walks into City Hall for a meeting, authorities said.

The Davenport, Fla., City Hall is pictured in a Google Street View image.

Police were able to determine from photos taken from the property handicap placard placed on Bradley's vehicle displayed an expiration date of "10-18," according to the sheriff's office. The placard had been issued to Evelyn King Letterman, who died on Aug. 29, 2012, and had a true expiration date of Oct. 30, 2013, authorities said.

While executing a search warrant at her home, deputies found two handicap placards, the one belonging to Letterman and another belonging to a person who died in 2015, the sheriff's office said.

"We expect our elected officials to set the proper example," Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said in a statement. "She not only violated the law, she embarrassed the citizens of Davenport with her illegal conduct."

I see so many people with these placards hop un-assisted out of vehicles parked in handicap spots and have no trouble walking, shopping, carrying heavy objects, etc. Most of us need to park far from the entrance in order to take advantage of the opportunity to walk.